#theoryaspractice

[harrison4thomas]

Meaning and Message - Introducing Semiotics

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Semiotics is the theory that investigates how sign systems work, and how they can use images and symbols to represent a word or phrase. For example, if you see a sign with a graphic of children crossing a road, you understand that it means ‘children crossing’.

On the opposite, some signs can be read differently depending on the person who is reading it; and certain factors such as age, birth place and their circumstances. Signs can also include many alternate ways of communicating a message. A sign can use spoken or written language, it can also use codes, gestures, images, objects or sounds.

There are 3 types of signs that can be read by the brain, these signs are;

Icon - A sign that directly shows the psysical form of what it stands for.

Index - A sign which implies the object that is being represented.

Symbol - A sign with a conventional or arbitray relation to the object.

[harrison4thomas]

Perception Illusion and Propaganda

Everything that surrounds us is being absorbed into our brains and processed; such as, noise, colours, lights and images. We take in absoloutely everything, but mostly subconsiously in our minds.

We were shown the dark image above during our lecture, it was used to express that ‘Less Is More’. The shape of the street light can only been seen slightly, which leaves the viewer of the image guessing. We were asked to question what we belived was being shown to us in the image. Was it really a sreet light, or was the sensory information we processed incorrect?

Another task we were given was to read this jumbled text, and try to understand what the message was. I didn’t struggle to read the message here, I found that my brain would instinctly change the words for me so they were the correct way to read them. This demonstrates the power of the human brain, and also shows it’s weakness.

[harrison4thomas]

Paul Rand - I B M

Paul Rand designed this very famous and popular for IBM back in 1981. The poster shows an eye, bee and a letter M; which is a visual word puzzle for IBM. This is know as a ‘rebus’, which is when you represent letters by using picutres. The poster looks modern and attractive, I like the muted colours used as it causes poster to look vintage. When you see a logo for a massive technology comapany, such as; Apple, Samsung or Sony, the logo is either typography or a small icon. This logo is very original and unique from all the others you would typically see. Originally, IBM did not like the logo, as they thought that as the company sold bussiness machines, (not eyeballs or beehives) the poster would be confusing and damage the bussinesses indentity. Nethertheless, the poster was accepted by the company and is now known for being one of the most famous bussiness posters created.

When released, a short poem was added to the bottom of the poster. It gives a more rational explaination for the use of the eye, bee and the M.

An Eye for perception, insight, vision. A Bee for industriousness, dedication, perseverance. An “M” for motivation, merit, moral strength.

[harrison4thomas]

Levi’s 501 Commercial

Levi’s 501 commercial was a breakthrough for advertising. Today, seeing a shirtless man on the television would be seen as the norm; but in 1985, it was a huge moment.

The advertisement shows a millitary man looking around at the different girls around him. Then, a man walks into a launderette holding a bag that contains a bunch of small rocks, and then pours them in to the washing machine. He then begins to undress, to reveal a muscualr body, which makes women gasp and elders shocked. The man then sits back in a chair and waits for his laundry to finish.

The advertisment was loved by the UK public, the 1950′s America aestetic, the sex appeal and the vast amount of nostalgia, all added up to be the perfect formaula. Even the soundtrack, “I heard it through the great vine”, by Martin Gaye made its way back into the tracks after Levi’s use of the song in its advertisment.

What was the whole point of this man stripping down in the middle of the launderette? Levi’s has always been the original blue denim jeans label, but it was seen as something that werenot seen as trendy, and were more popular with peoples dads. The young attractive man stripping down and causing a lot women to stare made other young men inspired buy the jeans. This shows the power of advertisement; overnight, Levi’s went from unpopular to the latest craze.

[harrison4thomas]

The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects

The Medium is the Massage: An Inventory of Effects is book co-created by media analyst Marshall McLuhan and graphics designer Quentin Fiore. The book contains 160 pages, which have all been created in a unique and experimental way of design. Some of the pages within the book are left intentionally blank; and others are printed backwards, so the reader has to hold the book unto a mirror to be able to decipher the text. The book causes the reader to think, by completing tasks before even being able to read what is within the book. Without a mirror, some pages would not be read. It causes the reader to feel a sense of accomplishment when the book has been fully analysed. 

The title of the book is a remix of Marshall McLuhan’s often quoted saying, “The medium is the message”. McLuhan then began to use the term “massage” to denote the effect each medium has on the human sensorium, taking inventory of the “effects”of numerous media in terms of how they “message” the sensorium. By 1967, McLuhan had already come to realise that his original quote had become cliché, and was ready for the term to be recycled, remixed and revisited. 

[harrison4thomas]

Tex Avery - Symphony in Slang 

“Symphony in Slang” is a cartoon that was created back in 1951; it was written by Rich Hogan and directed by American animator, Tex Avery. The animation was distributed with the movie “No Questions Asked” by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The animation features a man named John Brown, who dies and makes his way over to the Pearly Gates. He then begins telling his life story to Noah Webster (know for being the “Father of American Scholarship and Education”) and the first Bishop of Rome, Saint Peter. John Brown begins using a variety of his eras slang, such as “its raining cats and dogs” and “I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth”. The animation uses visual gags to then conjure short scenes of what these metaphors would look like in the “real” world. As John Brown continues to explain his life, Saint Peter and Noah Webster begin to get more and more confused. 

I like how this animation touches on hows slang can conceive a new language in itself. This is very similar to how art can be perceived, too. One person may see a painting of cats and dogs raining down from the sky, and see this as a plague. Another person would see the painting and understand its real message and visual metaphor. 

[harrison4thomas]

Ikea - Chuck out your chintz

In 1996, Ikea released an advertisement that encouraged the public to “chuck out” their old furniture, and start decorating their homes with more modern furniture. The video featured women tearing apart their homes and throwing them into a large yellow and blue skip. At the time, Ikea were really struggling to encourage the public to move on from the old fashioned interior design. “Chuck Out Your Chintz” couldn't have worked out any better for the Ikea. The campaign encouraged women to try redecorate their homes; as women could make the most decisions on what the home would like. This is why the advertisement features only women, to give confidence to the public. Even Tony Blair coming to power helped Ikea and their campaign; as Britain felt the needed to change everything up a little. The Daily Express even created a headline stating, “Downing Street chucks out its chintz”. Which was publicity gold for the Swedish interior design company.

I really like the advertisement, its a friendly and encouraging campaign that is trying to encourage the public to evolve. It was a very good way to market themselves, as they were then seen as modern and trendy; and still are today.

[harrison4thomas]

Cadbury’s Gorilla Advert

The ‘Gorilla’ advertising campaign began on the 31st August 2007, and was produced by Cadbury’s Dairy Milk chocolate. The advertisement features a Silverback Gorilla playing the drums in a Cadbury’s purple studio. The Gorilla begins playing the drums to ‘In The Air Tonight’ by Phil Collins; a song that has great drums in it. The advertisement is 90-seconds long, but was trimmed to 30-seconds when broadcasted. The advertisement had a budget of £6.2 million, which is massive for an television advertisement; but quite modest for a company such as Cadbury’s Milk Chocolate. 

The advertisement received a great reception from the British public; many parades and Facebook pages were made after the release of the video. The video was also released on to YouTube, and was viewed a whopping 500,000 times a week. Normally, the British public prefer to avoid as many advertisements as possible. The massive numbers of views the advertisement was gaining (with the viewer choosing to watch it on YouTube) is astonishing. 

I think this advertisement is very funny and unique. It is a very brave way to advertise your product, as the advertisement doesn't even feature the product until the last few seconds of the video. Cadbury’s decided to create a whacky and memorable advertisement, which in turn worked out fantastic for the company.